The Goodnewspaper The Food Edition

HELLO HELLO! Whether it’s a hot bowl of soup when we’re sick, an overpriced soft pretzel at a sporting event, or the sweet relief of a favorite gas station snack on the way home from a road trip, food is often something we envision as a source of comfort and joy. However, food is also a means to control and destroy. Folks might face the debilitating journey of disordered eating, lack access to nutritious food due to racial and socioeconomic oppression, or are subjected to inhumane workplaces and wages in the name of customer service. In this issue of the Goodnewspaper, we explore those messy (or should I say saucy?) nuances and find the helpers who are bringing more hope, equity, and sustainability to the table. We researched the beautiful…

About 34% of all annual human-made greenhouse gas emissions are generated by our food systems, according to the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre. While reducing meat consumption and being more thoughtful about food waste are great ways to reduce our personal carbon footprint, we also need the help of innovative technologies and solutions to keep that number down. In Stockholm, Sweden, a restaurant is piloting carbon-absorbing aprons that capture greenhouse gas from the air. The aprons, designed by the Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel (HKRITA), are treated with an amine-containing solution that attracts carbon dioxide and stores the carbon on the surface of the textile. “Many power plants have to scrub as much carbon dioxide as they can out of the air before the exhaust is released,”…

Madison, Wisconsin chef Dave Heide used to be known for his New Orleans-inspired restaurant: Liliana’s. However, the restaurant — which was named after his child — needed a reboot following the COVID-19 pandemic, and most importantly, his first-born’s transition. Heide’s child now goes by Ollie, so a rebrand was quickly in order. “My kiddo doesn’t go by the name that’s on the restaurant anymore,” Heide told the Wisconsin State Journal. “They don’t use that name. They go by a different name. As a dad who loves their kid, to have their dead name on my shirt every day when I come home and their dead name on their restaurant … that’s part of it." The new establishment, Ollie’s, is now adorned with rainbow ceiling panels and invites diners to the…

Community gardens are a great avenue for social and food justice — but they often leave out folks with disabilities. This exclusion occurs through inaccessible gardens, food banks that do not accommodate allergies or food limitations, or even an inherent belief that the definition of health is the “opposite of disability.” Additionally, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, disabled adults were two times more likely to face food insecurity in 2020 than their non-disabled counterparts. However, helpers across the country are working to shift the tides. Take nonprofit Kelly’s Kitchen, for example, which is creating a national network of food organizations that have accessible and accountable options for people with disabilities. “In the past, people have tried to solve [the food access] issue for able-bodied people… and then they…

GOOD Check out Kristie Cabrera’s blog “Growing Food In This Body,” which aims to dismantle ableism in food and nature spaces and bolster ideas of comunity responsibility. kristiecabrera.com/blog/growing-food-in-this-body BETTER Donate to organizations like Kelly’s Kitchen to help fund educational resources on inclusive food justice and create a nationwide network of accessible food pantries. kellys-kitchen.org BEST Improve community gardens and food pantries in your area by encouraging the formation of a people-with-disabilities-led task force and the implementation of meaningful accommodations.…

In 2017, the USDA found that out of 57,000 farmers in New York state, only 139 were Black. That’s an inequity Karen Washington has been fighting for over three decades. Washington co-founded the organization Black Urban Growers in 2010 to build networks of community support for Black growers in agrarianism, and in 2019, she helped create the Black Farmer Fund, which helps remove barriers to land, resources, and capital for farmers. “We were brought here from Africa because we were agrarian people. This country’s economic system was built on the backs of enslaved and Indigenous people,” Washington told the Guardian. “We have been brainwashed to think we played no role, but we need to redirect the falsehood into truth and power." Washington’s work has shaped so much of food and…